Myers Desecrates The Eucharist

[CatholicDefender]

[quote name='Lil Red' post='1607953' date='Jul 24 2008, 11:29 PM']+J.M.J.+

Um, no. see below.
+J.M.J.+[/quote]

What I mean is that if you were in the same room as him or anyone else about to do that you wouldn't stop them by force? Hopefully you would. I would NEVER be able to sit there and quitly pray while that was going on near me. Catholics need to act at times as well.

[EstoVir_TheWay_4]

Something like this is terrible, but it can really bring out the beauty of the mystery of the Eucharist. Jesus humbles himself so much that he would die on a cross for our sins, but he didn't just die. He gave us his body in the Eucharist, humbling himself so much that his sacred body can be desecrated. He shows us how to endure persecution.

I don't think we should react violently, but if I was in the room, it would require a lot of self control to not punch this guy out.

[Selah]

[picchick]

[quote name='CatholicDefender' post='1608126' date='Jul 25 2008, 07:04 AM']What I mean is that if you were in the same room as him or anyone else about to do that you wouldn't stop them by force? Hopefully you would. I would NEVER be able to sit there and quitly pray while that was going on near me. Catholics need to act at times as well.[/quote]



I wouldn't kill him but if I were in a room and I saw anyone doing that I would make an attempt to stop the act.

Edited July 25, 2008 by picchick

[Lil Red]

[quote name='CatholicDefender' post='1608126' date='Jul 25 2008, 05:04 AM']What I mean is that if you were in the same room as him or anyone else about to do that you wouldn't stop them by force? Hopefully you would. I would NEVER be able to sit there and quitly pray while that was going on near me. Catholics need to act at times as well.[/quote]
+J.M.J.+
i thought you meant that we should go beat him up or something like that! yeah, i agree that you should stop someone from taking the Eucharist like that.

God bless

[thessalonian]

I sent an email. Hope his box if full by now.

[zabbazooey]

Yikes....I actually attend the University of Minnesota.

I will say that at their Student Organizations week where the student organizations across campus sponsored activities for students, there were plenty of liberal, anti-Christian groups such as Students for Choice, Students Atheists and Humanists league, College Democrats etc. that sponsored activities.

How many conservative groups (The St. Lawrence Newman Center, Students for Life, College Republicans, etc.) were represented? NONE.

[lilac_angel]

[quote name='zabbazooey' post='1608295' date='Jul 25 2008, 11:40 AM']Yikes....I actually attend the University of Minnesota.

I will say that at their Student Organizations week where the student organizations across campus sponsored activities for students, there were plenty of liberal, anti-Christian groups such as Students for Choice, Students Atheists and Humanists league, College Democrats etc. that sponsored activities.

How many conservative groups (The St. Lawrence Newman Center, Students for Life, College Republicans, etc.) were represented? NONE.[/quote]

Yikes. Quite ironic, too, since Catholics founded the first universities. And I thought Pitt was ultra liberal... at least they had a Newman Center.

Thanks for posting that St. Clare novena, Archeology_cat.

[Archaeology cat]

[quote name='lilac_angel' post='1608337' date='Jul 25 2008, 06:40 PM']Thanks for posting that St. Clare novena, Archeology_cat.[/quote]
No problem. Gotta love Google searches.

ETA: If anyone is also interested in a novena to St. Monica instead/in addition, here it is (I St. Monica):

[quote]Exemplary Mother of the Great Augustine,
You perserveringly pursued your wayward son
Not with wild threats
But with prayerful cries to heaven.

Intercede for all mothers in our day
So that they may learn
To draw their children to God.

Teach them how to remain
Close to their children,
Even the prodigal sons and daughters
Who have sadly gone astray.

Dear St Monica, troubled wife and mother,
Many sorrows pierced your heart
During your lifetime.
Yet you never despaired or lost faith.
With confidence, persistence and profound faith,
You prayed daily for the conversion
Of your beloved husband, Patricius
And your beloved son, Augustine.

Grant me that same fortitude,
Patience and trust in the Lord.
Intercede for me, dear St. Monica,
That God may favorably hear my plea
For

(mention your petition here)

And grant me the grace
To accept his will in all things,
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord,
In the unity of the Holy Spirit,
One God forever and ever. Amen.[/quote]

Edited July 25, 2008 by Archaeology cat

[Spamity Calamity]

This is what I emailed him using that address at the beginning of the thread:

Dear Mr. Meyers
I forgive you for hurting me and other Catholics so much. God will also forgive you if you let him. I hope that you can eventually come to terms with the pain you have caused because of your intolerance for others beliefs and forgive yourself as well. Good luck and much love.

[asAlilyAmongThorns]

I think this guy must have a death wish. Doesn't he remember what happened with the Muslim extremists after that dutch [i]cartoon[/i]? I really also can't stand how he just preaches about logic and reason when there is none to this. He also "desecrated" that atheist book by Richard Dawkins. Isn't that his supposed cause? This whole thing just breaks my heart. I will certainly pray for all his "followers" and himself.

[Hassan]

[quote][b]Commentary:[/b]
As often as atheists accuse Christians and other religious groups of irrational hate crimes, here we have a clear act of hate by an avowed atheist professor.[/quote]

It's not a clear act of hate. He has never, that I know of expressed hatred towards Catholics. He was perfectly nice on the interview linked here.

When Atheists mention irrational religious hate crimes they generally mean Muslims killing a Blasphemer, a Pentecostal Christian shooting an abortion doctor, of a Christian tying a gay man to a fence and beating him to death. This was not a hate crime.

It was unbefitting a professor and a strong bit of evidence of the stark nihilism enveloping the Western World.

[quote]His action will gain cheers from his audience of “godless liberals”, and everyone else will simply “not get it” or be angry. In the eyes of Catholics he hasn’t accomplished anything beyond sacrilege[/quote]

Not all the "godless" are liberals.

[quote]and in the eyes of Muslims…well…let’s hope some of the more radical Muslims don’t find out about his hate crime. They very well could call for his death.[/quote]

Donahue (ap?) tried to get CAIR to be involved. He Dr. Myers says he has yet to receive any hate mail from a single Muslim.

This last little tidbit from you is a prime reason many non-Catholics don't have any sympathy for you all in this case. This constant juvenile whining about someone not also offending the Muslims. Guess what? Muslims did not threaten his life, call him a c***, threaten his children, try to get him fired, or call him Satan. Roman Catholics did. A very wise fellow once commanded his followers to remove the logs from their own eyes before removing the spec from their brother’s eyes. I don't mean to say the problems in the Muslim community are a "speck" next to the Catholic "log" or anything like that. My point perhaps you all should make sure that other Catholics won't respond with such sadistic fantasies and death treats before complaining about how no one bothers the violent Muslims fanatics, but only the peace loving Catholics.



[quote]I still have no idea what his point was.[/quote]

He said he got the idea from Church History. Good deals of Jews were violently murdered in Catholic lands by Catholics due to rumors that they stole hosts and drove rusty nails through them. I suppose he found it ironic. Beyond that he said his point was to prove that "nothing is sacred"

I found his decision immature and nihilistic.

[quote]What did he think was going to happen? By committing a hate crime against Christians did he think that Christians would suddenly go “oh, you are right, we should become godless liberals too”? His commentary after desecrating the Eucharist clearly shows that he is completely ignorant of the Christian and Islamic faiths. He is attacking the two largest groups of people in the world and doesn’t have a clue why. Perhaps it is as simple as ignorance of history, perhaps it is some kind of mental illness.[/quote]


?

[quote]The right course of action now would be for the university to fire him as he has committed a hate crime[/quote]

That is not a hate crime.

Let me take a page out of your book. I try to be respectful of religious objects, however I have, on occasion, tossed my Qur'an and/or Bible carelessly on my bed. I also will carry both in my backpack. I have treated the Qur'an disrespectful, is that a hate crime? Of course not. Like Myers this was done on private property and there was no intent to intimidate anyone.

[quote]and for Catholics to pray for him. What he will likely fail to understand is that no matter how much he hates people of faith, we still don’t hate him. As Christians, we love you Professor Myers and will pray for the conversion of your soul before you are judged for your actions.[/quote]


I think you all should see this through a different pair of eyes. Many people have noted "look how offended Muslims got over a cartoon!". The same idea is going on here, "look how offended Catholics got over a piece of unleven bread!". A man threatens to desecrate a piece of bread, which you all claim to be the substance of your lord. This man has been physically threatened (as has his family) and many here are working tirelessly to get him fired from his job, all for something he did in his home, and mentioned on his blog.

People loose interest after a while. I constantly here people talk about "anti-Catholicism" I know about it and I experienced it. I was raised Catholic in the good old south. I have been asked if I was raped by a Priest a number of times and other mocking,vulgar things, however not everything is anti-Catholic bigotry. Acting outraged when Birth Control ads are aired on television, Amnesty International says abortions are a women rights issue, people attack the way the Church handled the abuse scandal etc doesn’t help. When some Catholics claims every little thing that does not conform to their faith is some new wave of "anti-Catholicism" people stop listening after a while and just loose interest, "oh wow, the Catholics are offended over something, what a shock" becomes an internalized response.

When Bill Donahue constantly calls homosexual lifestyles "the homosexual death style" people really stop paying attention when he comes crying that someone hurt his feelings. Believe it of not some Jews get really offended when Catholics constantly call abortion a Holocaust, say it is a "new, larger holocaust" etc. It is really fairly rude to use the near extermination of the Jewish people for your political agenda. Catholics who do this are piggybacking on the emotional impact people experience when the holocaust is mentioned and some Jews really take offense to that. I constantly see Catholic talk about, "just imagine how the MUSLIMS would react if anyone tried that on them" Constantly implying that one religious group is made up of violent savages, unlike the you, the poor morally superior peace loving Catholics can be very offensive to many Muslims. Same thing with claiming their religion is the work of Satan, that their leader was a pedophile, that their Holy text is a violent bloody book that no morally sound person could truly consider divine etc can all be highly offensive.

I am not trying to chastise all Catholics. What I am saying that that, "Charity starts at home" if you yourselves cannot be charitable and accepting of other faiths and lifestyles, then how in the world can you expect other people to be charitable and accecpting to your beliefs? You cannot one the one hand claim to be peaceful and forgiving, and at the same time try to get this man fired. Perhaps it works for you, but others see it as hypocrisy, plain and simple.

The most visible and active element of the American Roman Catholic community has aligned itself with the right wing. The most notable Roman Catholics on television are Laura Ingrahm, Sean Hannity, Bill Donahue, that blond guy on “Fox and Friends” et al. With the exception of Colbert most public Catholics are associated with the national forces of American Exceptionalism and intolerance, and while it is not fair to the average Catholic these people come to reflect on the Catholic community at large.

[Hassan]

[quote name='Spamity Calamity' post='1608482' date='Jul 25 2008, 03:40 PM']This is what I emailed him using that address at the beginning of the thread:

Dear Mr. Meyers
I forgive you for hurting me and other Catholics so much. God will also forgive you if you let him. I hope that you can eventually come to terms with the pain you have caused because of your intolerance for others beliefs and forgive yourself as well. Good luck and much love.[/quote]


I think if all Catholics responded like this there would be a lot more public outcry

[lost_in_this_world]

I've been trying to keep up with this story a little bit and I don't care if your an atheist or not. If you personally don't believe that the sacred eucharist is Jesus, then don't worry about it. I view this story as just a disrepectful person looking for attention

[lilac_angel]

[quote name='Hassan' post='1608592' date='Jul 25 2008, 07:09 PM']I think you all should see this through a different pair of eyes. Many people have noted "look how offended Muslims got over a cartoon!". The same idea is going on here, "look how offended Catholics got over a piece of unleven bread!".[/quote]

There is a very large difference between a cartoon and what we believe to be the very Body of God. Remember, we don't believe that it's just bread. If we did, then perhaps that would be a more valid analogy.

[quote]A man threatens to desecrate a piece of bread, which you all claim to be the substance of your lord. This man has been physically threatened (as has his family) and many here are working tirelessly to get him fired from his job, all for something he did in his home, and mentioned on his blog.[/quote]

He threatened to desecrate and did desecrate Christ's Body. Those who are angry are justified, those who respond with sadness are justified, as long as the responses are tempered with Christian forgiveness and love.

He obviously knew how much attention this would get him - he obviously knew that what he did was a very controversial thing that would anger many. What did he expect? Anyone with half a brain would know that the act would have repercussions, and he's a professor, so I'm pretty sure he has half a brain.

[quote]When some Catholics claims every little thing that does not conform to their faith is some new wave of "anti-Catholicism" people stop listening after a while and just loose interest, "oh wow, the Catholics are offended over something, what a shock" becomes an internalized response.[/quote]

This wasn't just something that didn't "conform to" our "faith." It was a very overt act of desecration. And to deny the existence of a very real wave of anti-Catholicism is simply illogical. It's not even all that subtle most of the time. To expect us not to be saddened or angered by it is a little unreasonable and not a proper understanding of human nature. However, we shouldn't stoop to his level, we should respond as Christians. We don't have to be happy about it (Jesus wasn't happy about everything that went on around him), but we still must act as Christ taught us.

[quote]When Bill Donahue constantly calls homosexual lifestyles "the homosexual death style" people really stop paying attention when he comes crying that someone hurt his feelings. Believe it of not some Jews get really offended when Catholics constantly call abortion a Holocaust, say it is a "new, larger holocaust" etc. It is really fairly rude to use the near extermination of the Jewish people for your political agenda.[/quote]

Actually, the first definition of "holocaust" in the dictionary is: "Great destruction resulting in the extensive loss of life"... we don't base it on the Jewish holocaust. The Jewish holocaust was called such a thing because it was one example of the above definition.

[quote]if you yourselves cannot be charitable and accepting of other faiths and lifestyles, then how in the world can you expect other people to be charitable and accecpting to your beliefs? You cannot one the one hand claim to be peaceful and forgiving, and at the same time try to get this man fired. Perhaps it works for you, but others see it as hypocrisy, plain and simple.[/quote]

Many of us are praying and/or fasting as reparations and not focused or even interested in getting him fired. Most responses on this thread have been quite charitable, and I'm sure that a great many Catholic blogs are focused on praying for the man's conversion. To expect us to sit back and say "that's fine, maan, whatever floats his boat" that he drove a nail through the body of Christ and continue about our day as if nothing happened, though, is a little unreasonable to ask of someone who believes in the Real Presence.

[quote]The most visible and active element of the American Roman Catholic community has aligned itself with the right wing. The most notable Roman Catholics on television are Laura Ingrahm, Sean Hannity, Bill Donahue, that blond guy on “Fox and Friends” et al. With the exception of Colbert most public Catholics are associated with the national forces of American Exceptionalism and intolerance, and while it is not fair to the average Catholic these people come to reflect on the Catholic community at large.[/quote]

"The average Catholic" is generally misinformed and not at all passionate about their faith and many do not even believe that Christ is truly present in the Eucharist, even though that's what the Church has taught since the beginning. So of course those people would not be as offended as more devout Catholics. Not to imply that all right wing people are more devoutly Catholic. Intolerance comes in all shapes and sizes. Homosexuals in Brazil are working on a law that will imprison Christians for showing their differences in beliefs.

Edited July 26, 2008 by lilac_angel